


bathed in lightness (bathed in heat)

by IllyriatheSmurf7



Category: Amar a Muerte (TV), Juliantina - Fandom
Genre: Domestic, F/F, Fluff, Gap Filler, Lucía survives, Romance, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-13 02:05:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18022778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IllyriatheSmurf7/pseuds/IllyriatheSmurf7
Summary: Maybe the universe has finally decided to give them a break, Valentina thinks. Maybe this is the proof that they have suffered enough and life, or death, has finally started balancing the bad with the good.(Or, Valentina and Juliana got their happy ending, but a lot went unspoken and unseen. This is a glimpse at those privy moments of intimacy and happiness. After everything they’ve been through, they deserve it.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! How are you all after that ending? I already miss seeing Juliana and Valentina on a daily basis, so I guess this is a little attempt at coping with that and a way to fill in those moments we didn't get to see in the finale. Hope you like it!
> 
> Enjoy and let me know your thoughts!

After she gets out of the studio and her heartbeat finally slows down to a somewhat regular rhythm, Valentina spends the rest of her day in a blurry haze. Everything seems to happen at once, and yet every moment slows down to almost a halt and embeds itself in her memory in the most unsuspecting ways. It’s amazing how quickly she forgets the big speeches and the solemn words, but the little, seemingly insignificant details remain ingrained in her brain. The tears in her dad’s eyes, so different and yet unmistakable now that she knows who is hiding behind Jacobo’s face, as he apologized to her and her siblings for the errors of his previous life. The tight grip of Eva’s arms around her before being taken away by the police. The shaky excitement in Juliana’s voice on the phone.

 

_Juliana_.

 

It’s barely been a day but it feels like an eternity has passed since the last time Valentina saw her. Maybe it’s because the struggles and the hardships that have kept them apart for so long have been enough to last a lifetime, maybe it’s because Valentina doesn’t want to spend another minute away from Juliana anymore, but when she finally gets to Juliana’s flat and the younger girl immediately pulls her into a crushing hug, Valentina feels the sting of tears behind her eyes.

 

The undisguised happiness that brightens Juliana’s face is enough to turn them into a smile.

 

“Crazy! You’re crazy!” Juliana exclaims right after pulling Valentina inside the flat and kicking the door closed, hands too busy on Valentina’s face, pushing her hair out of the way and cupping her cheeks.

 

“I think I’ve heard that before.” They both can’t hold back a laugh as the same memory crosses their minds, a brief moment of levity in the midst of the chaos that seemed to have taken over their lives as they dealt with the insanity of transmigration through teasing words and stolen kisses.

 

“How are you? How do you feel?” Juliana asks once they sit on the couch, with that innate care that will never fail to make Valentina’s heart swell. She instinctively scoots closer and takes Juliana’s hand in hers, unable to keep herself from touching the younger girl. Juliana doesn’t have to do anything more than rub her thumb over the skin of Valentina’s hand. It’s enough to spread that familiar soothing warmth through Valentina’s body that makes her feel like she is finally home.

 

“I’m okay,” Valentina says with the utmost conviction in her voice. “I’ve never been more okay than right now.”

 

She sees the relief in Juliana’s warm, brown eyes, the way she can’t stop her lips from curling up in a smile. It’s honest and gentle and so incredibly tempting and Valentina has to use all her self-control to just not lean in and kiss her. She blinks repeatedly instead, trying to focus, and moves her gaze back to Juliana’s eyes. She doesn’t want them to be interrupted for once, not even by her own desire.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Yeah, just—” Juliana pauses for a moment, shrugging when words fail her. “It was… a lot. It was unexpected.”

 

Valentina doesn’t know what kind of answer she was expecting from Juliana, but the one she gets spikes a feeling of concern within her, as the younger girl’s hesitation immediately makes her second-guess her actions.

 

“Was it— I don’t know, maybe it wasn’t the right thing to do.” She purses her lips and frowns, trying to keep the anxiety at bay. “I didn’t think about how you’d react to it, maybe it made you uncomfortable, I—”

 

“No, Val,” Juliana immediately cuts Valentina off, preventing her from diving deeper into baseless worry. She leans close and nudges at Valentina’s cheekbone with her nose to make the older girl meet her eyes. 

 

“It didn’t make me uncomfortable. It was just surprising.” She smiles. “Good kind of surprising.”

 

“Really?” Valentina asks timidly, and Juliana can’t help the small laugh that comes out of her mouth.

 

“Really.”

 

The certainty in Juliana’s voice is enough to calm Valentina and she lets out a breath tinged with relief.

 

“Thank God. I didn’t say dumb shit for once in my life.” They both laugh at that, wide and unrestrained with that type of freedom that reminds of Valentina of a time when things were easier, but maybe not as real as they are now. Even with all the pain they went through, Valentina would never want to go back.

 

“But what about everything you told me?” Juliana suddenly asks. “You were so scared about the press finding out, that we would sink your family even more.“

 

“Yes, I was. I still am,” Valentina admits. She adjusts her grip around Juliana’s hand, staring at the younger girl and hoping her eyes reveal just how sure she is of what she is saying despite the light trembling in her voice. “I’m scared of what’s gonna happen, that people are gonna try to use what we have against us, that things are going to get even harder than they’ve already been. But I’m done letting fear and… I don’t know, the world, come between us.”

 

“Val…” Juliana starts, but Valentina shakes her head.

 

“No listen, you were right. You were so right.” Instinctively, she moves a hand to the back of Juliana’s neck, squeezing and pulling the girl closer. “I’m tired of all this. Life is too short to give up on what we love. I watched my dad almost lose Lucía and I can’t—”

 

She stops, feeling the tears starting to burn behind her eyes again. It’s all too overwhelming all of a sudden, just how close she had gotten to losing another mother figure, like the universe was punishing her for getting one parent back by taking the other away. She has experienced so much pain and loss in her life that she has no doubt more would break her definitively, especially if the person taken from her were to be the only one who was able to put the scattered pieces of her soul back together. 

 

“I can’t lose you,” Valentina whispers. “I don’t want to. I want to…” She bites at her bottom lip, suddenly feeling bare before Juliana’s searching gaze. She takes a deep breath and embraces the feeling, knowing that the same person who can make her feel this vulnerable is the only one who makes her feel safe enough to risk it. 

 

“I want to love you freely.”

 

The tenderness and love that fill Juliana’s dark eyes once she says that remind Valentina why she did what she did in the first place, and where the courage to do it came from.

 

She waits for Juliana to say something but seconds are eaten up in silence as Juliana seems unable to do anything except look at Valentina like she is staring into her soul. Juliana has always been less talkative than Valentina, less vocal in expressing her feelings and yet able to convey everything with perfect clarity. She just needs a look, or a touch.

 

In this case, a kiss.

 

Valentina wasn’t expecting it when Juliana leans in and her lips meet Valentina’s in a soft, lingering press, but she falls into it right away. It’s a delicate kiss that makes Valentina close her eyes and shake lightly. Juliana’s hand on her cheek is even more gentle than her lips, a soothing touch that grounds everything in reality, and Valentina finds herself letting out a trembling sigh into the kiss, wishing she could pause this moment and re-live it over and over, just to savor again the rush of comfort and love brought by Juliana’s taste with the same vibrancy of the first time.

 

The stinging in her eyes comes back and she knows tears have formed there because, when she and Juliana finally pull apart, the younger girl catches one at the corner of her eye with her thumb. Maybe it’s because the fragility of the moment makes her especially sensitive to Juliana’s caring nature, but that simple gesture leaves her wanting to cry and laugh at the same time. She opts for the latter, lettingout a quiet, wet laugh that makes her feel lighter and relieved and just _happy_.

 

“Does that mean you still wanna risk it?”

 

Juliana laughs and presses her forehead against Valentina’s for a moment. When she pulls back, her lips are curled in a small smirk. She lifts her hand and curls her fingers into a fist, until only her pinkie is sticking out.

 

“If you’re in, I’m in, remember?”

 

Valentina stares at Juliana’s extended finger with her mouth slightly agape, in disbelief about Juliana’s ability to show her love like this, so simply and completely. She sees that love reflected in Juliana’s dark eyes, warm and patient and just a tad bit scared, because the last time she was the one who broke the promise. It seems a lifetime ago, one filled pain and mistakes on both parts. Valentina knows what Juliana is promising and also what she is asking for. She can’t give Juliana forgiveness because there is nothing to forgive, and when she finally entwines her pinkie finger with Juliana’s and their fingers tighten together, all that pain of the past weeks melts away, replaced by the soothing, emboldening confidence of shared experience and love. 

 

They know now. Whatever happens, they are together.

 

The small laugh that bubbles up from their throats almost simultaneously makes the moment lighter, brighter. It’s addictive for both, after all the sorrow and tears, and when Juliana giggles and tucks herself into Valentina’s chest for a moment, wrapping an arm around her in that weird, cute hug that Valentina adores, Valentina realizes just how badly she had missed this, the physicality and intimacy of their relationship.

 

“I missed you,” Juliana says when she finally pulls back to look into Valentina’s eyes. It’s tinged with relief rather than sadness, and Valentina wonders if Juliana’s gaze is ever going to stop causing this familiar, intense fluttering she feels in her stomach.

 

“I missed you too,” she smiles, fixing a dark strand of hair behind Juliana’s ear. “And I’m tired of missing you. No one is going to keep me away from you anymore. Not my family’s enemies, not your father, I just want to…”

 

The words die down in her mouth when, unexpectedly, Juliana starts laughing. It’s even louder than before, a puzzling reaction that makes Valentina frown in confusion. Still, beyond her control, her lips curl into a smile, an instinctive response to seeing Juliana happy.

 

“What?”

 

“Well,” Juliana starts when she finally stops laughing. “It turns out that that’s not something we have to worry about.”

 

“Wait, what do you mean?” Valentina scoots closer, curiosity spiking up. Juliana shrugs, shaking her head like she can’t believe what she is about to say, and another small chuckle forces its way out of her throat before she finally explains herself.

 

“Chino won’t come for us.” Valentina’s eyes go wide with surprise, and Juliana laughs again. “Yeah, that was my reaction too. He said he won’t cause me and my mom any more trouble. And that I can love whoever I want.”

 

“Are you serious?”

 

Juliana nods, rubbing a hand over her face as she recalls the conversation with her father and struggles to convince herself it actually happened. “Yeah. He had a change of heart. I didn’t even know he _had_ a heart, but apparently he’s taking his second chance seriously.”

 

Valentina brings a hand to her neck and purses her lips once she becomes aware she is staring at Juliana open mouthed like a fish. The surprise remains there, though. She clearly remembers Juliana’s fear when she had told her Chino had threatened them, how that had seemed yet another impossible obstacle in their way, maybe the most dangerous yet.

 

Maybe the universe has finally decided to give them a break, she thinks. Maybe this is the final proof that they have suffered enough and life, or death, has finally started balancing the bad with the good.

 

“He wants to make up for his mistakes.”

 

“Yeah well,” Juliana starts. There’s a smile on her face but it’s missing that brightness that usually reaches her dark eyes and makes them shine beautifully. “I’m not sure two lives are enough for that.”

 

The sudden veil of sadness that darkens Juliana’s face tells Valentina that there is much more to her words, that Chino’s mistakes go well beyond him being a hitman and have impacted Juliana’s life in a personal, intimate way. Juliana barely talks about her past and Valentina feels suddenly guilty for not asking.

 

“But it’s a start,” Juliana eventually says after taking a deep breath. When her smile widens in that natural way that makes her features soften, Valentina resolves to make up for her own carelessness. But not now. She doesn’t want to taint the moment with heavy questions and dark memories.

 

Instead, she answers to Juliana’s smile with one of her own, leaning in and pressing her forehead against Juliana’s in hope that the familiar touch will be as comforting to the younger girl as it is to her. Hearing Juliana let out a chuckled sigh against her lips tells her it’s working.

 

“Good,” Valentina says when she pulls back. She quirks up a brow in simulated cockiness and smirks. “For him. Narcs and hitmen should know by now that it’s not wise to mess with us.”

 

Juliana’s eyes widen in surprise at Valentina’s words, the last thing she was expecting to hear in the seriousness of the conversation, but quickly enough her face twists and she can’t hold back a laugh. Loud and liberating and it gets lost against Valentina’s lips when Juliana leans in and kisses her again.

 

She pulls back after a moment, just barely so. Her face remains an inch away from Valentina’s, so close that she can feel Valentina’s hot breath against her skin. It makes her smile and she can’t stop herself. The words fall out of her mouth naturally, like for every time they ran through her mind Juliana actually said them out loud. There is no solemnity to her declaration, it’s whispered and tinged with a small laugh and it spreads through Valentina like a calming wave that carries the essence of Juliana herself and makes her absolutely certain that going through everything they did was worth it, even if just for this. Even if just to hear and feel Juliana’s whispered confession against her lips.

 

“I love you.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the wait, life has been pretty crazy. Here is the second and final chapter of this “fill-in” fic. It’s a beast compared to the first one. Let me know what you think <3

Three days later, Juliana is standing in front of the Carvajal mansion with Valentina’s arm around her shoulder. There is a smile on their faces as they watch Guille and Renata leave for their trip. Valentina had laughed all the way through their call when she had told Juliana what Renata had done after her brother’s proposal. She instinctively reaches for Valentina’s hand when she watches the couple kiss and curls into Valentina, pressing her face into the taller girl’s neck to hide the blush that spread over her cheeks. She isn’t used to this, being so happy and surrounded by happiness. She could, though, she very well could.

 

They wait until Guille and Renata’s car is gone, then Valentina grabs Juliana’s hand and walks them inside. The house is quiet, calm, it seems to reflect the peacefulness that Juliana feels. She remembers when she had arrived there for the first time, how in awe of a luxury she had never experienced she had been, and how nervously excited when Valentina had greeted her. She remembers how Valentina had described the house as “cold”, and no adjective seems more nonsensical to her than that one to describe the place, an adjective in complete contrast with the wave of warmth and joy that washes over her when Valentina wraps her arms around her and kisses her.

 

There is something about this kiss being so spontaneous and carefree, in an environment where Juliana had always felt nervous or out of place or unwanted, that makes Valentina’s lips taste even better than usual. The fear and anxiety over being discovered isn’t there anymore. The dread of being judged for their love, the concern over hiding what they feel because it would lead only to pain and sadness belongs to the past. Neither has to state it out loud to know it. It’s spoken through the glide of their lips, in the way Valentina lets Juliana cup the nape of her neck and pull her in to deepen the kiss, in the press of her palms over Juliana’s back.

 

In love, and free to be in love.

 

As unbothered as she is, when Juliana feels Valentina pull them towards the couch, that innate pull towards worry makes itself heard despite Juliana’s best wishes. It doesn’t disrupt her happiness, though, she’s not sure anything could at this point, and when she breaks the kiss and Valentina lets out a whine of protest, she can’t stop the small laugh that tumbles from her lips.

 

“Wait, Val.” She smiles wider when Valentina tries to lean in again, eyes fixed on Juliana’s lips like she will die if she doesn’t kiss them again soon enough.

 

“Val.”

 

“What?”

 

Finally Valentina unglues her gaze from Juliana’s mouth and meets Juliana’s stare. The younger girl laughs again at the quiet annoyance she can hear in Valentina’s voice, but she realizes she is no better than Valentina in being addicted to each other when she sees the haze of need in Valentina’s eyes and immediately feels a pleasant tug at her lower stomach.

 

“You okay?” Valentina asks, blinking fast to regain focus.

 

“Yeah, I’m perfect. Just…” Juliana tucks her bottom lip between her teeth, feeling a faint blush spread over her cheeks, unable to suppress a wave of shyness. She laughs again and throws her arm around, gesturing at the large windows all around them, not one inch of the room hidden from view. She hopes Valentina will understand what she means by her gesture alone, but when the taller girl keeps staring at her interrogatively, Juliana swallows back her timidness and asks directly.

 

“You want to do it here?”

 

Valentina’s eyes go wide at that, taken aback by Juliana’s bluntness. Then, her lips pull slowly up in a smile that grows and grows until it turns into a laugh. It’s bright and amused and Juliana would think she misread the situation if it weren’t for the mischievous glint that makes Valentina’s blue eyes shine.

 

“How naughty of you to think that, Miss Valdés.”

 

Juliana laughs and pokes at Valentina’s shoulder, feeling a faint blush spread over her cheeks.

 

“Shut up. Acting all innocent like you weren’t trying to seduce me two minutes ago.”

 

“Seduce you?” Valentina smiles wider at Juliana’s choice of words and pulls the younger girl closer to her, circling her arms around her waist. “Who says I was trying to seduce you?”

 

“Weren’t you?” Juliana counters back, quirking up a brow in a challenging expression, like she is daring Valentina to deny her real intentions, and Valentina grows so amused by the playfulness and levity of the situation that she is unable to keep up with her act. 

 

“Okay, maybe. But!” She can’t continue because Juliana breaks in a fit of laughter, beautiful and immediately infectious and Valentina can’t help but kiss Juliana again to taste that laugh on her lips.

 

“You don’t have to worry,” Valentina says once they finally break the kiss. “Guille is gone and my dad is with Lucía. She still has a few more days at the hospital and he wants to stay close to her. So…” She moves her gaze to a dark strand that has fallen over Juliana’s cheek and starts playing with it, but when she sets her eyes back on Juliana’s, the younger girl sees that same mischievous, excited glint,only more intense than before. “We have the house to ourselves.”

 

It’s an enticing sight. Valentina’s blown pupils and her lips slightly parted and curled in a smirk, and Juliana’s body screams at her to ignore logic for once and to just let Valentina do what she wants with her. Her resolve gets especially undermined when Valentina leans in and brushes her lips against her jaw, pressing soft kisses over the line of her bone all the way to that spot under her ear that sends shivers and tingles down her spine. 

 

“What about…” Juliana closes her eyes and has to swallow hard to try to focus enough to form coherent words. “What about Silvina? Last time she almost caught us and—”

 

Valentina shakes her head and her nose brushes against Juliana’s earlobe. Juliana has to suppress a whimper when Valentina laughs quietly and her breath hits Juliana’s skin, damp where the taller girl pressed those torturous kisses.

 

“I sent her away for the week. Gave her some needed vacation. We are alone.”

 

“And then you say you aren’t trying to seduce me.”

 

Valentina pulls back enough to be able to meet Juliana’s eyes. The smile is still there, teasing and yet gentle in a combination that only Valentina can make work and that Juliana simply cannot resist to.

 

“Is it working?”

 

Juliana’s answer arrives right away, silent and unmistakable, when she cups the back of Valentina’s neck and pulls her in for another kiss. It’s deeper and demanding and Juliana cannot hide her satisfaction when she sucks at Valentina’s bottom lip and she hears her whine into her mouth. She tilts her head and changes the angle of the kiss, pushing against Valentina’s mouth with the same hunger as the taller girl and splaying her hand over the small of Valentina’s back, reveling in the feeling of the heat of Valentina’s skin through the thin fabric of her lace shirt.

 

She opens her eyes when Valentina tugs at her leather jacket and pulls it off of her with evident impatience, like the garment is offending her personally by concealing Juliana’s body from her view. It makes Juliana laugh quietly and she drops her arms along her sides to let the jacket slide off of her and onto the floor more easily. 

 

It’s in that split second right before Valentina can capture her lips again that Juliana casually glances at one of the huge windows and her brain screams at her through the fog of pleasure, reminding her of the last one of her concerns. Despite all needs and instincts, she puts a hand over Valentina’s shoulder, stopping her before she can kiss her again.

 

“Okay, but your security team.”

 

The moment Valentina manages to collect herself enough to stop chasing Juliana’s lips and meet her gaze, Juliana sees the realization dawn on her. Her eyes grow wide and fixed for a second before Valentina rolls them back into her head and passes a hand over her face, letting out an annoyed groan that would fit better in the mouth of a child who was just denied candies. It’s such an adorable sight that Juliana bursts into giggles again.

 

“Stop,” Valentina whines, but it only makes Juliana laugh harder and Valentina feels the corners of her mouth pull up despite herself, especially when Juliana leans in and presses a small kiss right next to her lips, with her usual tenderness that makes Valentina melt.

 

“Let’s go upstairs?” Juliana suggests with a smile and Valentina is quick to nod. They pretty much jog their way to the room, with Valentina tugging at Juliana’s hand to make her keep up. When they get to Valentina’s room, Juliana barely has the time to close the door behind her before she is pulled back into a hungry kiss.

 

Valentina doesn’t give Juliana time to breathe, to think. Her mouth and hands seem to be everywhere at once and Juliana can only try to follow, not used to unleashing her passion in such an unrestrained physical way. She can’t help but smile between kisses, completely enamored with Valentina’s eagerness to feel more and more of her. She whispers her name but gets no answer in return, only another bruising kiss and a tug to her hips, like Valentina is trying to blindly walk them to the bed without ever coming up for air. Despite the throbbing desire sparked by Valentina’s hands underneath her shirt, Juliana eventually pulls back just out of reach for Valentina’s mouth and cups her face, smiling wider at the sight of dark, hooded eyes and flushed lips.

 

“Val, slow down,” she says with a quiet laugh. “Why the rush?”

 

She watches Valentina’s throat bob when she swallows hard through her panting and tries to focus enough to answer to the question. Juliana has never seen her like this. Not even the first time they had sex she had seemed so desperate.

 

“Sorry, I just—” Valentina presses her forehead against Juliana’s for a second, trying to regain her breath. It’s only in that moment that Juliana realizes she is shaking lightly. Instinctively, Juliana rubs her thumb over Valentina’s cheekbone, soft and soothing, but the trembling seems to only intensify with her gentle gesture.

 

“I don’t wanna waste any more time, you know?”

 

The confession shouldn’t surprise Juliana but it does. Maybe it’s because of everything that happened in the recent weeks, how they had drawn away from each other and Valentina had asked for distance in the moment when Juliana had needed to be close to her the most. Even when Valentina had admitted to not really thinking about what she had asked, that feeling had lingered there for Juliana, the feeling that their time was slipping away beyond their control, because there would always be something coming between them. Valentina’s declaration on TV and Chino’s promise to leave them be had spread a wave of reassurance through her, and for once in her life she had let herself be free from concerns. Free from everything except _happiness_. She had not considered that Valentina might still be affected to the point of needing to consume her to be sure this is real.

 

“Hey, I know. But we’re together now,” Juliana says, moving her thumb even more gently than before. Valentina lets out a shaky laugh against Juliana’s lips and locks her arms behind the small of Juliana’s back. The younger girl feels the tiniest pull, something so slight that she knows Valentina isn’t even aware of it, just unconsciously drawing her closer.

 

“I know, I know. It’s just…” Valentina rolls her eyes and laughs again. “I guess sometimes it’s hard to believe all of this is really happening.”

 

There it is. Exactly what Juliana was thinking. She doesn’t dismiss Valentina’s feelings because she understands them perfectly. If she stops and really thinks about where they are now, it feels surreal. Being in Valentina’s arms alone, without having to worry about who witnesses their love, feels like a dream.

 

_“You don’t have to worry about that anymore”_ sounds insensitive to Juliana, like a dismissive way to write off what Valentina feels and she never wants to dismiss what they were able to conquer. She feels too blessed for that. So, instead of telling Valentina not to think about the past, she tilts her head forward and presses a soft, lingering kiss on Valentina’s lips.

 

She locks gaze with the taller girl once she draws back. “I’m yours.”

 

Juliana reaches behind to take hold of Valentina’s hand and places it over her chest like she had done the first time they slept together, right above her heart. Valentina follows the movement with her eyes and Juliana could swear she has never seen her so vulnerable.

 

“Yours,” she repeats, and Valentina’s eyes shoot up again, meeting Juliana’s gentle, reassuring stare. There is something unspoken hiding behind her blue irises, and Juliana can’t quite figure it out. Valentina is looking at her like she is the most precious thing in the universe, like she wants to spend the rest of her life treasuring her but something is telling her that Juliana isn’t hers to touch or have. Juliana waits for Valentina to say something, to explain that glint of doubt that Juliana can see in her eyes, so out of place after the levity of their earlier interactions, but Valentina remains quiet. She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth and moves her gaze over Juliana’s features, lingering over her eyes and lips. 

 

Juliana isn’t good at talking about her feelings. If she could, she would wax poetic about the intensity of her love for Valentina, but she doesn’t know how. She has always favored actions instead of words.

 

So, she kisses Valentina again.

 

She moves a hand behind her neck and pulls her in, untucking Valentina’s bottom lip from between her teeth and pulling it into her mouth. Their entwined hands remain pressed over Juliana’s chest, stuck between their bodies as she deepens the kiss and Valentina replies with the same hunger. She feels Valentina shiver when she licks at the roof of her mouth, and her fingers clench over Juliana’s chest, feeling the thumping of her heart tick up. That steady, intense beat says more than a thousand words could.

 

Juliana acts with a boldness that she doesn’t recognize as her own, but her need to show Valentina the truth behind what she said subdues any anxiety. Moving her other hand behind Valentina’s neck too, she blindly pops the button of her collar open, letting the fabric fall loose over Valentina’s collarbones.

 

“I want you,” she pants between kisses. Using all her willpower, she takes one step back just out of Valentina’s reach. Then, she grabs at the hem of her shirt and takes it off. Her hands are only slightly shaking when she reaches behind her back to unclasp her bra and lets the garment fall on the floor as well. There is something nerve-racking about standing this bare in front of a fully clothed Valentina, but Juliana embraces that feeling of vulnerability with open arms, refusing to let anything stop her, or this. The one who can do that is Valentina herself.

 

“I want you,” Juliana says again, moving close to Valentina as the older girl does a terrible job at keeping her eyes on Juliana’s face. It makes Juliana’s stomach flutter pleasantly, seeing just how much she can affect Valentina, just how much she seems to need her. And Juliana wants nothing more than to give her everything she needs.

 

She presses her forehead against Valentina’s and their noses rub together. It’s such a tiny contact but they both shiver with it, both feeling like they’re about to crack open with the intensity of their need.

 

“Do you want me?” Juliana asks against Valentina’s lips, and that’s the final, irresistible push. Valentina lets out a positively desperate groan and crashes her lips against Juliana’s.

 

There is no stopping this now, no more holding back. Valentina moves one hand under Juliana’s jaw and sneaks her other arm around her waist, pulling the girl flush against her and kissing her like she never wants to come up for air. Their hands grow restless with every swallowed whimper and glide of their tongues. Valentina has complete access to Juliana’s skin, and she takes full advantage of it, unashamedly running her palms on every inch of Juliana’s toned back and pulling her closer than physically possible to feel the press of her naked breasts through the fabric of her shirt. Having Juliana half-naked in her arms doesn’t seem to be enough for Valentina, Juliana realizes when she feels long fingers sneak under the waistband of her pants and trying to reach for the curve of her ass with an unabashed eagerness that sends a heavy throb between Juliana’s legs.

 

Valentina’s touches only enhance Juliana’s need to do the same. She slides a hand underneath Valentina’s shirt to feel her smooth, blazing skin against her palm, and is rewarded with a wanton sigh into her mouth that makes her tremble. When Juliana drags her teeth over Valentina’s bottom lip and sucks it soothingly into her mouth, that heat Juliana can feel with her hand becomes too much for Valentina. She rips herself away from Juliana’s plump lips and pulls off her shirt, impatiently throwing it away before doing the same with her bra. She dives back into the kiss when one strap is still hanging from her wrist, and they both moan when their naked breasts finally rub together with no more barriers.

 

From there, their desire just grows uncontrollably. Their remaining clothes make their skin itch and almost in sync, they move to take them off, hands quick and uncoordinated with that type of frantic need that turns a simple action like popping a button open into a challenge. Everything is more challenging when done with eyes closed and mouths locked together. They can’t help but laugh when Valentina almost falls down while kicking off her remaining boot. The silly distraction slows them down only for a moment. 

 

Their minds seem to be connected because Juliana starts pushing Valentina towards the bed exactly at the same time as Valentina starts pulling her. They move blindly together, too busy with kissing and feeling each other to watch their steps, and when Valentina’s legs hit the edge of the bed, they both lose their balance and fall onto the mattress.

 

“Sorry,” Juliana laughs, conscious that she crushed Valentina’s body with the fall, but Valentina’s smile and the kiss she presses on Juliana’s lips, soft and languid, tells her that the older girl doesn’t mind her weight on top of her at all.

 

Juliana leans back to allow Valentina to scoot back towards the top of the bed, and she takes advantage of the brief moment of pause to pull herself up and take off her pants, before crawling back on the bed and over Valentina. She stops for an instant, taking in the sight of Valentina underneath her. She is nothing short of a vision like this, hair splayed out over the pillows, chest and neck deliciously flushed, pants unbuttoned and unzipped already. The way Valentina rocks her hips up tells Juliana that she wants her to take care of the last part. Juliana is happy to oblige to the silent request. There is nothing she could deny to Valentina.

 

Sitting back on her haunches, Juliana slides her fingers under the waistband of Valentina’s jeans; with all the pulling and tugging from before, they moved lower down Valentina’s waist, and when Juliana slips her fingers in, she immediately feels the fabric of Valentina’s underwear under her pads. She looks up at Valentina with a silent question in her eyes, and Valentina understands what she is asking without the need for a single word. Her eyes grow even darker than they already were when she nods and gives Juliana the answer she was waiting for. She lifts her hips and Juliana tugs her pants and underwear at once down her legs and off of her, leaving Valentina completely naked.

 

It knocks the breath out of Juliana’s lungs just like the first time, and for several seconds she can do nothing except stare at Valentina’s body, feeling herself grow hotter and wetter. Never looking away from Valentina, Juliana braces herself with one hand on the mattress and reaches down to take off her own panties. It’s harder than she thought in the position she is in, the underwear gets stuck at the level of her knees, and she only manages to pull it off after kicking out one leg with a muttered curse that makes Valentina laugh even in the intensity of the moment. It’s one of the things Juliana loves the most, how everything becomes light and joyous when they are together.

 

“Come here,” Valentina says, and Juliana doesn’t think twice before doing as told. They both sigh when she settles on top of Valentina and the older girl wraps her arms around her, pressing their bodies flush together. Every inch of smooth, hot skin touching sends tingles and shivers through their systems, and Juliana thinks she would be happy to stay like this forever, safe and warm in Valentina’s arms, if it weren’t for the feverish desire she can see in Valentina’s eyes, almost entirely black by now.

 

When Valentina moves a hand to cup her cheek and pulls her down for a languid kiss that makes them both quake, Juliana realizes just how much she missed this, how nothing could ever compare to this intoxicating mix of tenderness and desire and intimacy that only Valentina can make her feel. 

 

The throbbing between her legs intensifies almost to a painful degree when Valentina runs her tongue over her bottom lip before sliding inside her mouth, and it’s only when Valentina lets out a moan muffled by their kisses that Juliana becomes aware that her hips have started a grinding motion with a will of their own, chasing after the soothing friction her body is demanding. She is pressing down on Valentina’s abdomen, dangerously close to her center, and for a moment Juliana wonders what it would feel like to rub their cores together. The thought alone evokes images and feelings too intense to bear, threatening to push her over the edge right away. She stops rocking her hips and pulls back with a sharp intake of breath.

 

“No, don’t s—” Valentina’s protest gets lost in a gasp when Juliana latches on to the skin of her neck with her lips, kissing and sucking at every sensitive inch. Juliana hears her name in a breathy moan when she sucks at Valentina’s pulse point, throbbing wildly beneath her lips and tongue.

 

She was about to move down Valentina’s chest, when suddenly Valentina sits up and makes Juliana jump in surprise. Before Juliana can even realize what’s happening, Valentina moves her hands under Juliana’s thighs and pulls her in and over her lap. 

 

Juliana isn’t given the time to think or speak before she feels one hand sneak around her body and another clench in her hair at the back of her neck, pulling her into a kiss that slams the air out of her lungs. She instinctively wraps her arms around Valentina’s neck, holding herself as close as physically possible, while the other girl kisses her like she is trying to annihilate all her senses and replace everything with only her taste and a consuming, blazing pleasure.

 

The bucking of Juliana’s hips starts again, even more uncontrollable now that her center is pressed against Valentina’s abdomen as low as the joint of her thighs. She digs her fingers into Valentina’s shoulder and breaks the kiss to suck in a breath.

 

“Val,” she pants hotly against Valentina’s mouth, pressing her forehead against Valentina’s to find some sort of anchor through the boundless intensity of what she is feeling. Valentina seems to have different plans, though. She doesn’t want Juliana restrained, she wants her wrecked, destroyed by unbridled pleasure in the safety of her arms. Juliana realizes this when Valentina tightens her arm around her waist to have a more secure hold on her and moves her other hand down Juliana’s chest, until it reaches the space between their bodies. Juliana jolts and gasps loudly when she feels Valentina’s palm press between her legs.

 

They still for an instant, trapped in the heat off a moment so overwhelming that it feels like their first time all over again. The hesitancy and delicacy that had been replaced by the irresistible force of their passion and desperate need resurface right then. Juliana recognizes them in Valentina’s eyes when she pulls back enough to look at her. It’s a gaze of pure love and desire, veiled by that hint of disbelief and fear Juliana had noticed before. It’s reflected in the way Valentina holds her, like Juliana is going to slip away and never come back if Valentina doesn’t hold her and loves her hard enough. Juliana told her she is hers, but she realizes now that maybe Valentina doesn’t need to hear it to be convinced, but to feel it.

 

She swipes her thumb over Valentina’s full, bottom lip, hanging irresistibly close in a beautiful pout, then she leans in and rocks her hips into Valentina’s palm, giving her permission to take everything she needs, making sure Valentina knows just how much she wants to feel her and to be felt by her.

 

The silent gesture unlocks something inside Valentina, re-awakening that feral need she had put on hold. Her eyes grow darker than Juliana has ever seen them, and Juliana feels the surprising sting of teeth on her lip when they kiss again. It doesn’t scare her at all, it only sends stronger zings of pleasure to her core. Valentina is nothing if not loving and caring with her, even in the throes of desire, and the careful slide of her fingers through Juliana’s slit is the proof of it. 

 

She is less tentative than during their first time, there is an eager quality to her touches, a barely tamed rush like she cannot wait to watch and feel Juliana fall apart, but is trying to restrain herself. Gone are the concerns over overwhelming Juliana with something she had never experienced, and the swipe of her pads over Juliana’s clit is much more intentional than explorative this time. It sends wave after wave of pleasure though Juliana’s body, and she finds herself whispering Valentina’s name again, whiny and pleading and as clear in its request as the motion of her hips. When Valentina slides one finger inside her and stills, Juliana squeezes her eyes shut and her mouth opens, but no sound comes out. She is too breathless for it.

 

Her hands clench tighter over Valentina’s shoulders, feeling the girl clearly shake beneath her. When she starts grinding her hips again to encourage Valentina to move, the older girl lets out a sound so quiet but urgent that Juliana wonders who truly is the desperate one between the two.

 

They kiss again through panted breaths and all-consuming thrusts. When they do, it’s hot and messy and it’s cut off quicker than they expected because with her next push, Valentina adds another finger and Juliana goes rigid, dropping her head down against Valentina’s and trying to grow accustomed to the feeling. She has no way to adjust to the rising of pleasure, though, she can only chase it with the grind of her hips and cling to Valentina as she lets herself be consumed by a wave of heat so intense it brings tears to her eyes.

 

Valentina on her part never seems satisfied, she can never get enough of Juliana. Her lips move everywhere she can reach. She tilts her head up to kiss Juliana’s jawline, moves down the enticing length of Juliana’s neck, presses her mouth on her chest with every upward stroke that pushes Juliana closer to her.

 

“So beautiful,” Juliana hears her whisper against her skin, and Juliana feels the pressure in her belly grow and become unbearable.

 

“Val,” she says with her eyes closed and a begging voice. It makes Valentina remove her mouth and look up at her. Her thrusts slow down and are replaced by a knowing curl that pushes Juliana to heights she knows she can’t sustain for long. It’s the type of pleasure that leaves her mind blank. She can’t think anything, say anything. Except for one thing that tumbles from her lips like a prayer.

 

“I love you.”

 

Valentina freezes when she hears her. Her fingers grow still inside Juliana and her arm tightens around her, leaving Juliana torturously suspended right at the edge of falling apart. It’s only a moment, though. Moving her hand under Juliana’s jaw, she pulls Juliana’s face inches from hers and resumes her curling motion with even more determination.

 

“Tell me again,” she whispers, and Juliana moans with how low and needy her voice is.

 

“I love you,” Juliana says, grinding desperately against Valentina’s hand.

 

“I love you, I love—”

 

Her words get lost in a stuttered gasp when she finally topples over the edge and comes. It ripples through her body with a strength that’s impossible to hide or contain. She moans freely against Valentina’s face, riding each wave as Valentina steadies her with her arm and keeps moving to prolong her orgasm as much as possible.

 

Juliana’s body grows slack in the aftermath of her high. She feels loose, shaken by light tremors with each heavy breath and involuntary clench around Valentina’s fingers, now still inside her. Valentina waits patiently, pressing soft, soothing kisses on Juliana’s cheek, on her jaw, at the corner of her mouth. When she carefully pulls away, Juliana still can’t help the tiny sound that escapes from her throat, immediately lamenting the loss of heat and of Valentina inside her.

 

She presses her sweaty forehead against Valentina’s at the same time as Valentina wraps her arm around her, like they are both not ready to let go of that sweet proximity, warm now rather than burning.

 

“I love you too,” Juliana hears Valentina whisper, and she fights against the tiredness to lift her head and look at her. Valentina’s eyes have grown soft again, gentle and loving like her thumb on Juliana’s cheek. Even after hearing it declared on national television, Valentina’s confession still has the power to make Juliana’s heart swell to the point she thinks her chest will explode with the feeling. Her lips curl into a lazy, joyful smile, and she rubs her nose against Valentina’s, happy and at peace beyond anything she believed possible.

 

“I should have told you more often,” Valentina continues, as her hand moves up and down the length of Juliana’s back. “I should’ve told you every day. Make sure you knew.”

 

Juliana’s lips stretch wider with what she is hearing. Valentina’s words sound adorable to her ears. Adorable and silly. She doesn’t understand what else Valentina thinks she should have done when she proved time after time just how much she cares for Juliana. She is about to brush it off with a laugh when Valentina’s next words catch her attention.

 

“I should’ve left no doubt about it. Maybe if I did, you wouldn’t have—”

 

She doesn’t finish the sentence. She cuts herself off with a sharp inhale and grows quiet. Even when Juliana lifts her head to look at her, Valentina shows no signs of wanting to continue, or of knowing how to. Juliana searches Valentina’s eyes, looking for the meaning of those unspoken words behind blue irises. She is surprised to realize that behind the haze of pleasure, Valentina’s eyes seem to be veiled by something darker, something that looks like sorrow, or regret.

 

The sight makes Juliana frown. She wants to ask, wants to know what is going on inside Valentina’s brain to cause these uneasy feelings in a moment so beautiful, but Valentina looks so open and fragile that Juliana realizes that any question right now is only going to make her slip deeper into whatever it is that’s troubling her.

 

She brings a hand up to cup Valentina’s cheek and kisses her softly.

 

“I love you,” she whispers again against Valentina’s lips, and she feels the older girl tremble with the feeling.

 

Yes. Sorrow doesn’t belong in this moment. Juliana doesn’t want it to belong. What she wants is to make Valentina as happy as she made her, to make her feel as loved as Valentina made her feel. Even when the thought makes her shake, Juliana has no doubt about what she wants to do.

 

Shifting on Valentina’s lap, Juliana gently pushes at the girl’s shoulder, encouraging her to lie down on the bed. She follows the movement right away, settling on top of Valentina’s body and immediately capturing her lips in another soft kiss. Whenever they kiss like this, lazy and unhurried. with gentle hands exploring each other’s body, Juliana thinks she’d be content with doing just this for the rest of her life. She could kiss Valentina forever and never grow tired of her taste, or the softness of her lips, or the shaky sighs she lets out whenever they change angle. It’s bliss in its most serene form.

 

But Valentina squirms lightly beneath her, doing a poor job at keeping her hips still, a heated reminder of a more primal need, and Juliana remembers she wants to make Valentina experience a different kind of bliss.

 

She moves slowly, taking her time with her lips and tongue on skin she knows is sensitive. From Valentina’ jaw to her neck, running the tip of her tongue over Valentina’s collarbone before sliding lower and kissing Valentina’s chest. 

 

Juliana just had an orgasm, but the sharp, little gasp Valentina exhales when she wraps her lips around a stiff nipple reaches directly between her legs and makes her tingle with re-awakened need. She ignores the feeling, though, and continues her way down Valentina’s body, pressing kisses on the smooth plane of Valentina’s stomach. She can feel taut muscles clench underneath the soft skin, almost daring her to use her teeth to see what other beautiful reactions she can trigger. She keeps it soft, though, too nervous to attempt any more bold acts. Her mind is spinning already with what she has set herself up to do.

 

The instinct to stall kicks in when Juliana swirls her tongue in Valentina’s navel, and she has to battle the nerves caused by inexperience and general timidness. Her hands on Valentina’s hips start trembling, but she digs her fingers in the jut of her bones and wills herself not to stop. She knows what she wants and nerves are not going to stop her.

 

When she kisses even lower, she is interrupted again. It’s not her anxiety this time. It’s Valentina’s voice.

 

“Juls?”

 

Juliana looks up and meets Valentina’s gaze. Her pupils are blown, eyes clearly hooded with arousal, but there is a hesitancy in there that unsettles Juliana.

 

“Am I… am I doing this wrong?”

 

Valentina’s eyes go wide at that.

 

“What? No!” She quickly shakes her head in such a frantic manner it tells Juliana she isn’t lying. “Of course not. I just didn’t realize you were going to…” Valentina lets the words hang, unable to finish the sentence without feeling like she is going to combust. Still, a deep flush spreads all over hers and Juliana’s face at the same time.

 

“It’s just… you don’t have to, you know?” Valentina says, squeezing her eyes shut and rubbing her fingers over them.

 

It confuses Juliana. The words awaken her nerves all at once, and suddenly she feels self-conscious about the position she is in, lying naked with her face so close to Valentina’s center when the other girl maybe doesn’t even want her to be there to begin with. 

 

She purses her lips and swallows hard, forcing herself to keep her eyes on Valentina and ask out loud. As uncomfortable as she is with _talking_ about this, silent assumptions are only going to lead to bad things. She wants to give Valentina everything she needs, but she has to be sure she knows what the other girl needs.

 

“You don’t want me to do this?”

 

Juliana’s voice is no louder than a timid whisper, but it reaches Valentina’s ears with perfect clarity. When it does, the older girl quirks up her brows and reacts in a way Juliana wasn’t expecting at all.

 

She laughs.

 

A laugh that bursts from her mouth loud and quick, making Juliana tilt her head back in surprise. Valentina presses her lips together to stop herself, but it’s useless. Another laugh bubbles up right away, louder than before.

 

“Val!” Juliana huffs, but she can already feel her lips stretch in a smile too.

 

“Sorry, sorry,” Valentina says while her laugh dies down to a chuckle. Juliana can feel her muscles clench with it when she buries her face into Valentina’s stomach and groans.

 

“Hey, look at me.” Juliana feels a gentle hand cradle her head, and she timidly looks up. Valentina’s eyes aren’t mocking like Juliana was expecting them to be. They are filled with nothing but care.

 

“Of course I want you to,” she says, with a tone that oozes desire despite the softness of her voice. The involuntary clench of her thighs beneath Juliana tells the younger girl that her words are honest, maybe even restrained compared to the true extent of Valentina’s need.

 

“Then… why did you…?” Juliana leaves the question unfinished, but what she is asking is beyond clear. When she does, the veil of hesitancy is back over Valentina’s eyes.

 

“I just…” she sighs, struggling with words in a way so unlike the Valentina that Juliana knows. She plays absent-mindedly with Juliana’s hair before whispering an answer in a blur. “You don’t have to prove anything, Juls.”

 

It’s an explanation that Juliana was not at all expecting. The type of answer that confuses rather than clarifies. It speaks of something unresolved between them, and Juliana can guess what it is, but Valentina is so off base that Juliana would laugh if it weren’t for the vulnerability in Valentina’s eyes.

 

“I don’t know, I don’t want you to feel like you have to prove—”

 

“Val, listen to me,” Juliana cuts her off, pulling herself up a little to stare into Valentina’s eyes. She is shaking with nerves, she thinks she will forever shake with nerves when talking about this, no matter how many times they do it or how comfortable she gets. She pushes through it, though.

 

“I want to. I just do, okay? It has nothing to do with what you said.”

 

Valentina searches her dark eyes, finds nothing but honesty in them. Their features soften at the same time when Juliana rubs her thumb over Valentina’s hipbone, grounding and reassuring.

 

“So relax, okay? I’m the one who’s freaking out here.”

 

It pulls a small laugh from Valentina’s mouth, and Juliana smiles with it, feeling like they’re back on the same track finally. She presses a kiss below Valentina’s navel, reveling in the small shivers that ripple through her skin.

 

“You don’t need to.” Juliana’s eyes snap up. “Freak out, I mean.”

 

Juliana lets out a relieved sigh that makes Valentina chuckle. She plays with Juliana’s hair, trailing her fingers through dark locks and patiently giving Juliana all the time she needs. It’s a feat on its own, refraining from arching her hips and guiding Juliana’d head between her legs. Now that she was reassured in her doubts, Valentina is dying with pent-up need.

 

Juliana presses another lingering kiss at the apex of Valentina’s thigh, then she settles between her open legs. The sudden proximity with Valentina’s center leaves her dizzy. It’s a combination of nerves and arousal Juliana has never experienced before, something that threatens to make her mind snap if she pauses to think about it for too long. She is so close that her trembling breath hits Valentina’s slick flesh, making her shudder and squirm.

 

Juliana doesn’t want to be teasing, they’ve both waited long enough.

 

“If I’m not… or you don’t—”

 

“Juls…”

 

“Guide me,” Juliana blurts out, looking up and meeting hooded blue eyes. “Just guide me, okay?”

 

Valentina nods once, caressing the side of Juliana’s face, and that’s the final encouragement Juliana needs. 

 

Emptying her mind of any thought and worry, Juliana leans in and presses her lips against Valentina’s center.

 

The first touch is tentative, just a soft kiss to power through the initial nervousness. She does it again right after, lingering there for longer and letting Valentina’s taste reach her for the first time. She hears the older girl gasp quietly with the feeling, a sound that turns into a deep, heavy sigh when Juliana opens her mouth and delicately slides her tongue through Valentina’s slit.

 

Valentina’s taste reaches her more fully this time, something unlike anything she has experienced, and it only takes a second, more secure lick for Juliana to decide she loves it. Her eyes close instinctively and she lets herself fall into the feeling, exploring with her tongue and lips as Valentina breathes loudly above her and shifts her hips ever so slightly. Juliana had thought she would need Valentina to spell out what she likes or doesn’t like, what she wants Juliana to do or what isn’t working, but her body seems to speak for herself, and Juliana is even more receptive now than she was while pleasuring Valentina with her fingers.

 

She can’t help but compare it to the only experience she has had of this, when this had been done to her to get her ready for other things. Juliana had felt nothing but a light tingling that had made her grow only more uncomfortable and rigid than she already was. Valentina instead moves like every swipe of Juliana’s tongue threatens to send her over the edge. Her hips arch into Juliana’s mouth rhythmically, her fingers clench and unclench in Juliana’s hair, with a delicacy that clearly comes from self-control.

 

Juliana wants to tell Valentina that she doesn’t have to restrain herself, that she can take everything she needs, but moving her tongue away when Valentina is moaning so beautifully feels like a blasphemy, and something entirely beyond Juliana’s abilities.

 

When Valentina bends her trembling legs a bit, Juliana’s hand moves instinctively and she curls her fingers around Valentina’s thigh, drawing it over her shoulder in a way that makes her mouth fit perfectly between Valentina’s legs and makes the older girl gasp Juliana’s name.

 

Juliana has no idea where all the doubts and fears had come from. She wanted to pleasure Valentina, but she is the one who is experiencing bliss. Every little sound and movement is an instant gratification, and the few times Valentina praises something she is doing out loud, voice whiny and wrecked, Juliana feels a throbbing between her legs so intense she finds herself clenching around nothing.

 

She doesn’t know how long she stays there. The only tell-tale sign of the passage of time is the growing ache in her jaw and tongue. It’s a discomfort she ignores entirely, only gripping harder at Valentina’s leg and doubling her efforts. One glance up and the sight of Valentina’s heaving chest, of her flushed face pressed back against the pillow, gives Juliana all the energy she needs.

 

She is flicking her tongue over Valentina’s clit when the older girl starts tensing visibly. Her breathing grows ragged and desperate, and her hands in Juliana’s hair become demanding, gently but firmly telling Juliana not to move from that spot. It feels like a plea more than an order, but Juliana is happy to oblige either way. 

 

Her free hand, splayed over Valentina’s stomach, reaches to the side and takes hold of Valentina’s hand, clenched tight around the sheets.They entwine their fingers together and Juliana hears Valentina sigh with the feeling. It’s the type of closeness they both need, grounding and reassuring before the tipping over.

 

Thinking about the times she used her mouth on other parts of Valentina’s body, about the reactions that provoked, Juliana wraps her lips around Valentina’s clit and adds a gentle suction to what she is doing.

 

It does the trick.

 

Valentina jerks and tenses, squeezing Juliana’s hand into a vise as her back arches off the bed and seems to remain suspended for eternal seconds. She lets out a noise that Juliana thinks is supposed to be her name, but it’s so high-pitched and strained in Valentina’s desperate pursuit of release that Juliana barely recognizes it. She increases the pressure of her lips and tongue jus barely, and Valentina tips over.

 

She moans and quivers with an intensity Juliana hasn’t witnessed before. Juliana keeps her mouth fixed through every jerk of Valentina’s hips, continuing what she is doing until Valentina drops back on the bed, breathless.

 

Her hand grows slump in Juliana’s hold, and her thighs tremble around Juliana’s head with the aftermath of her orgasm. She twitches when a gentle flick of Juliana’s tongue on her clit is one too much and triggers an hypersensitivity she is too spent to bear. It makes Juliana smile, and she moves her mouth to the inside of Valentina’s thigh, kissing and nuzzling at the soft skin as she waits for Valentina to catch her breath.

 

Minutes have passed by the time Juliana feels a gentle tug at the back of her head. She wipes her chin and moves up Valentina’s body, settling on top of her and smiling at the look of disbelief she finds in Valentina’s eyes through the fog of pleasure.

 

“That was…” Valentina swallows and pants again, still slightly out of breath. It makes Juliana giggle, and a soft blush spreads over her cheeks. Knowing she rendered Valentina speechless definitely has an effect on her. Now more than ever she wants to lean down and kiss her, but she hesitates, not sure if Valentina will want to with her taste still all over her.

 

Valentina destroys that concern right away, when she pulls Juliana down with a hand behind her head and kisses her, soft only in the beginning. It grows deep and sucking the moment Valentina tastes herself on Juliana’s lips, groaning and craning her neck up with the feeling. 

 

They kiss and kiss, mouths gliding and bodies rubbing together with a passion that shouldn’t be there after the intensity of their climaxes. Maybe it’s because after weeks of interruptions and obstacles every touch is addictive now, but their need is as strong as the moment they set foot in Valentina’s bedroom.

 

“Are you okay?” Valentina murmurs at some point, detaching her lips just enough to ask the question.

 

“Of course,” Juliana smiles, leaning in for another kiss. When Valentina pulls back again, she smiles with the little huff that comes out of Juliana’s mouth.

 

“Was it good for you too?” she asks quietly, keeping her eyes on Juliana’s lips and playing with a dark staring of hair that has fallen over. “I mean. Did you like, you know… doing it?”

 

Juliana’s heart swells with the tender concern, and her body grows even hotter than it already felt when she leans down and nods against Valentina’s lips. This is not a question she can answer without cracking open and losing hold on reality.

 

“Okay,” Valentina smiles, voice shaking a little before she leans up and kisses Juliana again. She lingers, keeping Juliana close with her hand over the back of her neck. The sudden flick of her tongue against Juliana’s upper lip causes a small whimper to come out of Juliana’s throat.

 

“Can you go again?”

 

Juliana shudders with the question and nods.

 

“Good.”

 

She feels herself being rolled on her back, and Valentina follows her, laying on top of her and leaning down for another kiss. When she pulls back, there is an eager, excited smile on her face.

 

“Your turn.”

 

Juliana is helpless against Valentina’s attentions, each kiss or swirl of her tongue down her body threatening to set her on fire.

 

And when Valentina finally presses her mouth between her legs, Juliana discovers yet another form of bliss, and she wonders how many more she will experience with the girl she loves by the time the day is over.

 

* * *

 

Valentina wakes up to a ray of sunshine blinding her and an empty bed.

 

She squints her eyes against the annoying source of light and rolls over with a groan. She lifts her arms above her head and stretches like a cat, letting out a tiny sound with the pleasurable feeling of her muscles loosening. They protest a little with the soreness she feels, especially her legs, but Valentina only smiles with it when she drops back on the bed, remembering exactly what caused this to begin with.

 

Who.

 

The thought suddenly makes Valentina aware of the emptiness of her bed. Looking to her side, she lazily plays with the case of the pillow before pressing her palm over it. It’s still faintly warm.

 

Her lips curl in a wide grin as the memories from the day and night before pass through her mind. She has never been a morning person, but the need to feel Juliana in her arms again wins even against her morning laziness.

 

Valentina kicks the blankets away and gets up, stretching again her naked body once on her feet. She slips into a clean pair of underwear and throws a baggy t-shirt over her body. Her pajama shorts are nowhere to be found, and she can’t bother to look for them now. The shirt reaches right above her knees anyway, it will do just fine.

 

Valentina walks out of the bedroom and down the hallway, lazily rubbing her eyes and yawning. By the time she reaches the stairs, she becomes aware of the faint sound of music coming from downstairs. It grows louder with each step she takes, going from a muffled sound to an unmistakeable melody. A smile pulls at the corners of Valentina’s mouth when she realizes what’s going on.

 

Guessing it doesn’t take away from the wave of warmth and pure happiness that washes over her when she takes in the scene before her eyes.

 

Juliana is in the kitchen, face turned away from Valentina as she moves between the stoves and the countertop. Her hair is up in a messy ponytail, she is wearing one of Valentina’s shirts and the shorts Valentina couldn’t find. She is humming the song that’s playing on the radio and her hips are moving to the music with innate rhythm.

 

Valentina has never been more in love.

 

She smiles wider and leans against the kitchen island, still unseen. Then she clears her throat.

 

“Can I have a juice, please?”

 

Juliana jolts in surprise and turns around, but her lips stretch into a wide smile as soon as she sees Valentina.

 

“Good morning!” she says with a laugh that tells Valentina it’s much later than she thought. Juliana walks up to her and leans in to give her a quick kiss from the other side of the island.

 

“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

 

Juliana just hums and pulls away, reaching inside the fridge to get the orange juice box.

 

“You looked too peaceful to wake you up,” she says, pouring a glass of juice and giving it to Valentina. The freshness and the vitamins entering her body immediately make Valentina feel like a new person.

 

“Thanks,” she says after gulping down the glass in almost one go. “It smells delicious, what are you making?”

 

Juliana smiles with the compliment and moves back to the stoves.

 

“Pancakes. I’m almost done.”

 

Valentina hums contentedly and steps inside the kitchen area, pressing herself against Juliana’s back and wrapping her arms around her waist while the other girl checks the status of their breakfast.

 

“You and food. My weaknesses.”

 

Juliana chuckles at that and turns her head enough o press a quick kiss on Valentina’s cheek.

 

“I know.”

 

“Yes, and you exploit it. Taking advantage of my distraction when I’m not expecting it.”

 

Juliana laughs quietly, knowing exactly what Valentina is referring to, even if she wouldn’t describe a session of artsy films, more popcorn than either could eat and making out on the couch as ‘exploiting’. She just wanted things to be clear between them.

 

_“Val,” Juliana whispers, swallowing back a moan with the mixed flavor of Valentina’s mouth and the salt of the popcorns still all over her lips. “Can I ask you something?”_

 

_Valentina mumbles in agreement, only half listening to what Juliana just said, too sleepy and relaxed and addicted to having Juliana in her arms to focus properly._

 

_“Earlier, while we were…”_

 

_Valentina can’t help but smile at Juliana’s shyness, entirely too amused with the way the younger girl hides her face in the crook of Valentina’s neck._

 

_“Yeah?” Valentina asks, encouraging, and she feels Juliana sigh against her skin. Her dark eyes seem hesitant when she looks up, like she is battling with herself about whether to ask or not. She presses a kiss in the hollow of Valentina’s throat and then rests her cheek against Valentina’s chest again. She grows quiet for several, long moments, while Valentina plays with her hair and the TV plays in the background. Juliana remains silent for so long that Valentina thinks she is not going to ask anymore._

 

_When the question arrives, Valentina is completely unprepared._

 

_“When you told me I didn’t have to prove anything, were you talking about Sergio?”_

 

_Valentina goes rigid under Juliana, sleep completely forgotten with the bluntness of the question. It’s her turn to stay quiet, until Juliana looks up again, eyes gentle but searching and clearly in need of an answer._

 

_“I…” Valentina sighs quietly and shifts underneath Juliana, pulling herself up a bit to rest her back against the arm of the couch. She is worried that whatever she is going to say, it’s going to be misinterpreted by Juliana, or one way or another taken negatively. Lying has only ever caused damage in her life, though, and her relationship with Juliana has always been rooted in honesty. It would be stupid to change this now._

 

_“Yes but… not in the way I think you think.”_

 

_“What do you mean?_

 

_Valentina squeezes her eyes, trying to find the right words to express feelings she isn’t even sure she fully understands._

 

_“I’ve been very… I guess self-centered is the right word. Yeah, I’ve been like that in the past few days.”_

 

_Juliana shakes her head. “You went through a lot, Val. You had so much to deal with.”_

 

_Valentina can’t help the huff that comes out of her mouth.Even if that’s true, Juliana went through just as much, more even, and Valentina can’t wrap her head around the way Juliana dismisses her own pain._

 

_“Yeah well, I could have been closer to you.”_

 

_Juliana remains quiet for long moments, meditating on Valentina’s words._

 

_“You think I didn’t know you love me?”_

 

_Valentina doesn’t answer,, but her silence is a confirmation on its own, and when Juliana speaks again, her words are a statement, not a question._

 

_“And you think that’s why I slept with Sergio.”_

 

_Valentina instinctively diverts her gaze, unable to keep her eyes on Juliana as her feelings are exposing so bluntly. Valentina never held the act against Juliana, but the thought that it might have been caused by her, or that she reacted bad enough that Juliana felt the need to prove something to her, threatens to cause a pain beyond words._

 

_“No.”_

 

_Valentina’s eyes snap down when she hears the word. She finds Juliana staring right back at her, with an expression on her face that looks like a mix of tenderness and amusement._

 

_“No, Val.”_

 

_Valentina blinks.” No?”_

 

_Juliana shakes her head, and her lips curl in a smile so tiny but genuine that Valentina can’t help but believe her words despite her own worries._

 

_“Look, Val,” Juliana scoots up on top of Valentina, getting closer to her face and shrugging as she works out how to say what she is feeling. “What happened with Sergio was not your fault. My mother said things, and he said things, and I just—”_

 

_She pauses, sighing heavily. Valentina wants to ask what Juliana is referring to, wants to know what Lupita and Sergio told her to get into her head, but she doesn’t want to interrupt._

 

_“It all became too much and it got to me. You’re not the reason for it.” A deep blush suddenly spreads on her cheeks. “And that’s definitely not the reason why I…” she bites her lip and looks down, blush now spreading to her cheeks._

 

_She is smiling when she finally looks up. A soft, contagious smile that melts Valentina’s fears._

 

_“Believe me, okay?” Juliana says, cupping Valentina’s cheek, and the older girl can only nod with a smile of her own._

 

_“Okay.”_

 

_Juliana’s lips stretch wider, and she cranes her neck up, capturing Valentina’s lips in a kiss that leaves no room for any bad thought or feeling._

 

_Juliana’s eyes are bright and content when she pulls back._

 

_“Silly.”_

 

“Silly.”

 

Valentina pokes at Juliana’s side with the teasing, and the younger girl yelps and curls away from Valentina’s ticklish fingers.

 

“Stop, you’re gonna make me burn this.”

 

She nudges away from Valentina and turns off the stove, lifting the last pancake off the pan and placing it on top of the pile she had already prepared. Valentina eyes them eagerly, suddenly feeling famished.

 

“What are we eating them with?”

 

Juliana nods towards the counter, and Valentina spots the bowls of sliced fruit, the bottle of syrup and the jars of honey and different jams spread all over. Valentina chuckles at the ridiculous amount of food, and she wonders how much more stuff Juliana would have prepared if she hadn’t walked in.

 

“Breakfast really is your favorite meal.”

 

Juliana smiles and takes a sliced strawberry from one of the bowls, lifting it in front of Valentina’s face. Valentina leans in, but before she can take a bite, Juliana pulls back. Just slightly, just out of reach. Valentina’s gaze flashes to Juliana’s eyes, and the teasing glint she sees there is unmistakable. This side of Juliana will never fail to amuse Valentina, and to drive her absolutely insane.

 

Juliana does it again when Valentina leans in a second time, chuckling with it when Valentina lets out a huff. When Valentina goes for it a third time, she doesn’t move, keeping her hand still as her eyes shine with a different glint when Valentina wraps her lips around the piece of fruit and her tongue touches Juliana’s pad.

 

They smirk with what goes unspoken between them, but they don’t let it evolve into anything more than that light teasing. There’s going to be time for that. They have all the time now.

 

Valentina hugs Juliana from the back again, while the younger girl starts putting the toppings on the pancakes, swaying lightly together as a new song comes on.

 

“You know what?” Juliana says, and Valentina can _hear_ her smile. She drops her chin on Juliana’s shoulder and kisses her cheek, feeling wholeheartedly at peace.

 

“What?”

 

“I’m happy.”


End file.
